Brooklyn Daily Eagle - DUMBOhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/neighborhoods/dumbo
enThe birdwatcher of Brooklyn Bridge Parkhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/3/6/birdwatcher-brooklyn-bridge-park
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>In her task of birdwatching, Heather Wolf has detected more than 150 species at Brooklyn Bridge Park.</p>
<p>An adventurous encounter with a bird in 2006 in Pensacola Beach, Florida, where she previously lived, made Wolf interested in birds for the first time. The shorebird that was flying straight to her while protecting its nest aroused fear and curiosity in Wolf, who back home wanted to know more about the flying animal.</p>
<p>She never imagined that this was the beginning of a lifelong passion. “Bird watching for me is not really a hobby, it’s a way of life,” Wolf said.</p>
<p>When the birdwatcher moved back to Brooklyn in 2012, she set a new goal, apply all she had learned in Florida observing birds, to Brooklyn Bridge Park.</p>
<p>Since then, Wolf has observed 153 species of birds in the one-mile stretch along the Brooklyn waterfront, most of them native to North America. The rock pigeon and the European starling are the few that are native to the wharf.</p>
<p>Species like the north mockingbird and the mallard duck are also park residents. “They either live in the park year-round or partial year, whether they’re breeding or building a nest there during the summer,” Wolf explained.</p>
<p>In winter, it’s possible to see diving ducks like buffleheads and red-breasted merganser. Wolf’s last sighting is the common goldeneye, a diving duck that visits the waters that border the park.</p>
<p><img alt="Common grackle nestlings clamoring for food above the basketball courts. Photos by Heather Wolf" title="Common grackle nestlings clamoring for food above the basketball courts. Photos by Heather Wolf" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/common_grackle_1.jpg?itok=QUcw5oiN" /></p>
<p>Thrushes, flycatchers, chimney sweep hunting in the wind and flying over Brooklyn Heights and wood warblers passing through in search of better weather and food up north are not rare in spring as New York City is part of the Atlantic Flyway, one of four main migratory routes for North American birds.</p>
<p>Wolf filed every sight in eBird (<a href="https://ebird.org/home">ebird.org</a>), a real-time checklist application from Cornell Lab of Ornithology, where she works as a web developer.</p>
<p>The application allows citizens to keep track of the observed species. The sighting data gives researchers, biologists and ornithologists an idea of ​​the abundance and distribution of birds.</p>
<p>It’s hard to believe that all these species can be seen right below the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. That’s why the birdwatcher highlights the importance of creating habitats in pocket parks like Brooklyn Bridge Park that permit birds to come to urban environments during migration.</p>
<p>At the park, Wolf, a self-taught photographer, has managed to witness wild scenes in an urban landscape like common grackle nestlings clamoring for food above the basketball courts and two male mergansers dancing in the waterfront while seeking courtship from a female next to them.</p>
<p>These and other findings appear in Birding at the Bridge, a book with photographs of more than 100 species where Wolf shares her journey as a birdwatcher.</p>
<p><img alt="Northern Mockingbird flight display." title="Northern Mockingbird flight display." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/northern_mockingbird_flight_display.jpg?itok=Ya5x_RZv" /></p>
<p>“The idea was to inspire people, especially in urban environments to just take a closer look because there are definitely more than pigeons passing throughout here or at your feet,” she said.</p>
<p>Binoculars and camera in hand, Wolf can be easily recognized in the park. Through any season, she will be there, roaming and observing.</p>
<p>“I’m stuck with it, I’m gonna be birding for life and I’m happy about it.”</p>
<p>Wolf leads bird walks in Brooklyn Bridge Park. If want to join her, check the dates at <a href="http://heatherwolf.com/">heatherwolf.com</a>.</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/bookbeat">Brooklyn Bookbeat</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-video field-type-file field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Video:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="file"><img class="file-icon" alt="" title="video/youtube" src="/modules/file/icons/video-x-generic.png" /> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L51aTA0L08" type="video/youtube; length=0">The birds’ portrayer of Brooklyn Bridge Park</a></span></div></div></div>Tue, 06 Mar 2018 20:53:00 +0000Paul Frangipane24165 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comTraffic time bomb looms if state fails to authorize faster, cheaper BQE fixhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/1/29/traffic-time-bomb-looms-if-state-fails-authorize-faster-cheaper-bqe-fix
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/bqe-cadman-exit-courtesy-dot-b.jpg?itok=n6Vgl7JB" alt="The Brooklyn Queens Expressway’s $1.9 billion rehabilitation is in the planning stages. Without approval of a money- and time-saving method known as design-build, however, 16,000 trucks daily may be diverted through the streets of Brooklyn starting in 2026. Photo courtesy of the NYC Department of Transportation" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Unless Albany acts soon, a nightmare traffic scenario is looming for Brooklyn and the entire metropolitan region.</p>
<p>The $1.9 billion, seven-year reconstruction of a dilapidated section of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street must be completed by 2026. If it’s not, the city’s Department of Transportation will likely have to divert 16,000 trucks daily from the highway onto local streets.</p>
<p>This would be an “unmitigated disaster” for Brooklyn, <a href="https://thebha.org/news/the-bqe-reconstruction-project/" target="_blank">according to the Brooklyn Heights Association </a>(BHA) and other community groups, which are pushing legislators to act before the clock stops. The section of roadway includes the triple cantilever underpinning the Brooklyn Heights Promenade.</p>
<p>The Department of Transportation (DOT) calls the BQE “one of the most critical and complex sections of urban expressway in the nation,” and reverberations from traffic chaos could extend out across the region.</p>
<p>In Brooklyn, trucks would likely exit the BQE in Bay Ridge and Sunset Park and use Third and Fourth Avenues; and to the north, they would exit before they get to DUMBO.</p>
<p>_________________________</p>
<h1><em>Rally at the Montague Street entrance to the Promenade on Friday, Feb. 9 at 10 a.m.</em></h1>
<p>_________________________</p>
<p>The BQE rehab can only be completed by 2026 if the state authorizes the city’s use of a streamlined bidding process called “design-build,” which will allow the work to be completed as many as two years faster and $113 million cheaper. DOT must issue a Request for Qualifications no later than this spring to begin procuring a design-build team.</p>
<p>Governor Andrew Cuomo, however, did not include design-build authority for the BQE Reconstruction Project as one of his legislative priorities this session. In June, the state Senate ended its session having failed to authorize its use. The Assembly has passed the measure. (More about design-build below this article.)</p>
<p><strong>How to Get Involved</strong></p>
<p>BHA says it has made passage of design-build authority for the project its highest priority this spring. The group is working closely with state Sen. Brian Kavanagh and Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon to promote its enactment, and plans several events where residents can get involved.</p>
<p>* Kavanagh and Simon are sponsoring a rally at the Montague Street entrance to the Promenade on Friday, Feb. 9 at 10 a.m. BHA’s Executive Director Peter Bray told the <i>Brooklyn Eagle</i> that he expects representatives from as many as 25 organizations at the rally, including neighborhood associations, Business Improvement Districts and the Chamber of Commerce.</p>
<p>* DOT will hold an informational BQE Public Scoping Meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 27 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Dock Street School, 19 Dock St. in DUMBO. A presentation at 5:30 p.m. will be followed by public testimony. Written comments on the Draft Scope of Work will be accepted by the Lead Agency until 5 p.m. on Monday, March 12. An online version is available at <i>BQE-i278.com. </i></p>
<p>* The BQE rehab will be the topic of BHA’s annual meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 28. Neighborhood turnout has not always been strong at DOT’s regularly scheduled workshops on the topic. “So we figured we’d bring it to the neighborhood,” Bray said. </p>
<p>* BHA is chartering a bus to visit legislators in Albany on March 6. The group has been “reaching out far and wide” to neighborhood associations such as the Cobble Hill Association and the DUMBO Neighborhood Alliance. “It looks like a strong showing,” Bray said.</p>
<p>“We’re working with DOT and the Mayor’s Office to coordinate to make sure the grass roots perspective is heard in Albany on design-build authorization,” he said. Representatives on the bus will divide into teams and visit Senators’ offices.</p>
<p>“It’s the Senate that’s the obstacle,” Bray pointed out.</p>
<p>The Cobble Hill Association is asking concerned residents to write a letter requesting design-build authorization for the BQE project to: The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo; Governor of New York State; NYS State Capitol Building; Albany, NY 12224.</p>
<p>They request that people send copies to copies to: State Senator Brian Kavanagh (<a href="mailto:Kavanagh@nysenate.gov">Kavanagh@nysenate.gov</a>) and Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon (<a href="mailto:simonj@nyassembly.gov">simonj@nyassembly.gov</a>).</p>
<p>Earlier this month, a bipartisan group of 19 Senators and Assemblymembers sent a letter to Cuomo urging him to include authorization for the design-build process in his upcoming state budget proposal.</p>
<p>But the governor failed to act, “for reasons known only to himself,” Bray said.</p>
<p>________________________________</p>
<p><strong>What is Design-Build?</strong></p>
<p>- Design-build is used on massive projects across the state, including the Tappan Zee and Kosciuszko bridges. But its use in NYC must be authorized by the state.</p>
<p>- The design-build process merges the design and construction bids, usually bid separately on large projects.</p>
<p>- When bid separately, two winning firms have to try to work together, adding time and cost to the project.</p>
<p>- Without design-build, the work will disrupt BQE traffic for up to two years longer than necessary and cost as much as $300 million more, according to DOT.</p>
<p>- Authorization for design-build on the BQE made it through the Assembly last year, but not the Senate.</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/news">News</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Truck traffic could swamp Brooklyn; Feb. 9 rally planned</div></div></div>Mon, 29 Jan 2018 22:25:00 +0000Mary Frost23829 at http://www.brooklyneagle.com‘Waterfront’ multimedia exhibition opens at Brooklyn Historical Society DUMBOhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/1/18/%E2%80%98waterfront%E2%80%99-multimedia-exhibition-opens-brooklyn-historical-society-dumbo
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/pipefitters.jpg?itok=Ma1ocTV_" alt="Pipefitters on a lunch break, 1977. By Frank Trezza, courtesy of the Brooklyn Historical Societ" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><span>On </span><span>Jan. 20 Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) will open “Waterfront</span><span>,</span><span>”</span><span> </span><span>an immersive, multimedia exhibition that brings to life the vibrant history of Brooklyn’s coastline through interwoven stories of workers, industries, activists, innovators, families, neighborhoods and ecosystems. </span></p>
<p><span>“Waterfront” is the first major exhibition on the history of Brooklyn’s coastline. The culmination of four years of development and research,</span><span> </span><span>“Waterfront” blends BHS’s acclaimed approach to historical interpretation with forward-thinking design to feature 12 concept areas that will engage visitors of a variety of ages and interests.</span></p>
<p><span>Upon arrival, visitors encounter a floor-to-ceiling sculptural installation of more than 80 archaeological artifacts and fragments excavated from the landfill beneath Empire Stores in the 1970s.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span><img alt="Warehouse workers, circa 1920. Courtesy of the Brooklyn Historical Society" title="Warehouse workers, circa 1920. Courtesy of the Brooklyn Historical Society" height="716" width="863" style="float: right;" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/brooklyn-warehouse-workers_0.jpg?itok=QWHjm0Ii" /></span></p>
<p><span>A centerpiece of the exhibition is a 14-foot reproduction of an 1879 lithograph of Brooklyn’s waterfront. Nearby, visitors can explore the sights, sounds and smells of Brooklyn’s 19th-century warehousing district and learn about hidden stories of Brooklyn’s coastline — from Walt Whitman’s waterfront trysts to hidden graves near the present-day Brooklyn Navy Yard.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>Two multimedia installations allow visitors to travel back into the coastline’s history.</span><span> </span><span>“At Water’s Edge,”</span><span> </span><span>an eight-minute film, introduces visitors to the waterfront’s dynamic history through 10 epic historical moments stretching over 20,000 years. Nearby, “History in Motion” drops visitors into historic paintings and photographs and weaves their actions into a 60-second movie starring themselves.</span></p>
<p><span>Workers and families are a central theme in the exhibition. “An Unfree Waterfront” highlights the moving and untold stories of three enslaved Brooklynites and their struggle for freedom along the shoreline. “Brooklyn Bivalves”</span><span> </span><span>tells the unlikely story of oystermen and sewage. In “A Laboring Family,”</span><span> </span><span>visitors become historians themselves and trace the story of one 19th-century Empire Stores dockworker, Michael Harkins, and his family. </span><span>Factory Women </span><span>lets visitors explore artifacts and listen to oral histories of female Navy Yard workers during World War II; a dress-up experience lets kids don work clothing and try their hand at ship fitting.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>The exhibition also looks at the present and future of the borough’s shoreline. Visitors explore salvaged materials and graffiti from the late 20th century when abandoned warehouses dotted the shoreline. Oral history and video installations tell of the waterfront’s mid-century economic decline and its 21st-century rebirth. “Rising Waters</span><span>,</span><span>” a touchscreen video installation, features historians, business owners, politicians, scientists and activists who explore key questions about climate change and sea level rise. Nearby, children and adults can design their own waterfront neighborhood</span><span> </span><span>using whimsical magnets of buildings, bridges, animals, landmarks and more on a 10-foot illustrated landscape.</span></p>
<p><span>BHS DUMBO is the only history museum in the DUMBO neighborhood and the Brooklyn Historical Society’s second location. </span><span>Opened in 2017, the 3</span><span>,200-square-foot satellite space is housed inside Empire Stores, a renovated 19th-century warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The warehouse, constructed in the late 1860s, once housed coffee, sugar, animal hides and other commodities when Brooklyn was one of the largest commercial waterfronts in the world. Empire Stores stood shuttered for decades and reopened in 2017 as a revitalized public space featuring restaurants, retail stores and offices.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>“Waterfront”</span><span> </span><span>at BHS DUMBO (</span><span>55 Water St.</span><span>) will be open to the public Tuesday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Suggested admission is $10 for adults, $6 for seniors and teachers and free for members and students of all ages.</span></p>
<p><span> </span></p>
<p><span> </span></p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><span>Information from Brooklyn Historical Society</span></p>
</li>
</ul>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/arts-and-entertainment">Arts and Entertainment</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New York’s First, Major Exhibition on Brooklyn’s Coastline Explores its Eclectic History and Global Impact</div></div></div>Thu, 18 Jan 2018 20:54:29 +0000Shlomo Sprung23734 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comFog envelops the Brooklyn Bridgehttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/1/12/fog-envelops-brooklyn-bridge
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/brooklyn-bridge-fog.jpg?itok=Sixw-IuK" alt="Icon in the mist: The Brooklyn Bridge is wrapped in fog. Eagle photos by Lore Croghan" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Icons in the mist.</p>
<p>Here's the Brooklyn Bridge, shrouded in fog that keeps rolling up the East River.</p>
<p>Over there, a runner clad in shorts is striding past the Manhattan Bridge.</p>
<p><img alt="A photographer in Brooklyn Bridge Park snaps a picture of the dramatic weather." title="A photographer in Brooklyn Bridge Park snaps a picture of the dramatic weather." height="714" width="1095" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/brooklyn-bridge-photog.jpg?itok=m6k6XqKm" /></p>
</p>
<p><img alt="It's a great day for runners to wear shorts." title="It's a great day for runners to wear shorts." height="716" width="1111" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bbp-bro-shorts.jpg?itok=mxxwa0TQ" /></p>
<p>There's no need for him to fear frostbite. The temperature in Brooklyn has been a freakishly balmy 58 degrees since 9 a.m.</p>
<p>A bit further down the shoreline, massive chunks of ice are bobbing in the water.</p>
<p><img alt="Ice chunks bob in the waters off Brooklyn Bridge Park. In the background, that's the Lower Manhattan skyline partly obscured by fog." title="Ice chunks bob in the waters off Brooklyn Bridge Park. In the background, that's the Lower Manhattan skyline partly obscured by fog." height="717" width="952" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/melting-ice.jpg?itok=guCpoAU6" /></p>
<p>Where can you find a front-row seat to all this weather drama? In Brooklyn Bridge Park.</p>
<p>Photographers are wandering up and down the popular park, snapping scenic shots. Perhaps it's time to play hooky and join them.</p>
<p><img alt="The fog and ice are irresistible to this Brooklyn Bridge Park visitor. " title="The fog and ice are irresistible to this Brooklyn Bridge Park visitor. " height="718" width="955" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/ice-photographer.jpg?itok=93A_lRJ5" /></p>
</p>
<p>A word of advice: Wear a hat, or the insane humidity will make your hair very frizzy.</p>
<p>Just a few days ago, the “bomb cyclone,” AKA Winter Storm Grayson, dumped snow all over the place. Temps plunged into the single digits.</p>
<p>Now we're in the grip of soggy spring-like weather.</p>
<p>Our fog's so thick, it would make San Francisco proud.</p>
<p><img alt="The NYC Ferry boat is barely visible at Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park." title="The NYC Ferry boat is barely visible at Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park." height="715" width="956" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/disappearing-ferry.jpg?itok=qK1Gb97D" /></p>
<p><img alt="Care for a swim? A mammoth puddle reflects the trees in soggy Brooklyn Bridge Park. " title="Care for a swim? A mammoth puddle reflects the trees in soggy Brooklyn Bridge Park. " height="713" width="920" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bbp-puddle.jpg?itok=11VGMTDV" /> </p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/arts-and-entertainment">Arts and Entertainment</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">It&#039;s 58 degrees in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Why are you indoors?</div></div></div>Fri, 12 Jan 2018 19:15:53 +0000Lore Croghan23686 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comCome see the Manhattan Bridge, with dazzling viewshttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/1/3/come-see-manhattan-bridge-dazzling-views
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/empire-stores_1.jpg?itok=7EXxVAxJ" alt="Here&#039;s why people walk across the Manhattan Bridge in cold weather — to see the Brooklyn Bridge Park shoreline, Empire Stores, Jane&#039;s Carousel, the Brooklyn Bridge and the World Trade Center. Eagle photos by Lore Croghan" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><em>Know your bridges, Brooklynites. The tourists do.</em></p>
<p><em>Our iconic spans are excellent spots for scenic strolls in every season of the year. </em></p>
<p><em>Didn't your New Year's resolutions include a resolve to get more exercise? A brisk walk over the East River is far more entertaining than a long slog on a treadmill. Bundle up in a down coat and heavy gloves, and you won't even notice it's winter. </em></p>
<p><span>*</span></p>
<p><span>It can't compete with the grandeur of the famous Brooklyn Bridge.</span></p>
<p><span>No other span can.</span></p>
<p><span>But the views are really something.</span></p>
<p><span>There's a reason savvy sightseers venture out to the middle of the Manhattan Bridge when the temperature's only 24 degrees.</span></p>
<p><span>Its pedestrian path offers a peerless perspective of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge as it swoops majestically over the East River. </span></p>
<p><span>From this vantage point on the Manhattan Bridge, Jane's Carousel in Brooklyn Bridge Park stands in front of one of the Brooklyn Bridge's stone towers, and the World Trade Center and the Woolworth Building in Lower Manhattan stand behind the Brooklyn Bridge's other stone tower. </span></p>
<p><span>From this spot on the Manhattan Bridge's walkway, the landmarked Empire Stores complex on the shoreline of Brooklyn Bridge Park and the nearby DUMBO Clock Tower can also be seen.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt="There's also a good view of the DUMBO Clock Tower up here on the Manhattan Bridge. " title="There's also a good view of the DUMBO Clock Tower up here on the Manhattan Bridge. " class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/dumbo-clock-tower_0.jpg?itok=AtJtW-VB" /></span></p>
<p><img alt="Before we head to the Manhattan shoreline we take another look at Brooklyn Bridge Park." title="Before we head to the Manhattan shoreline we take another look at Brooklyn Bridge Park." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/brooklyn-bridge-park_1.jpg?itok=R6fyOQwU" /></p>
<p><span> </span></p>
<p><strong>Latvian immigrant Leon Moisseiff designed the bridge</strong></p>
<p><span>The Manhattan Bridge, which spans the East River between DUMBO and Lower Manhattan's Chinatown, was designed by Leon Moisseiff. </span></p>
<p><span>The Latvian immigrant was the lead designer of San Francisco's renowned Golden Gate Bridge. He also designed the infamous Tacoma Narrows Bridge, AKA “Galloping Gertie,” which collapsed four months after its opening in 1940.</span></p>
<p><span>The Manhattan Bridge opened on Dec. 31, 1909, before its construction was actually finished. </span></p>
<p><span>It was Mayor George B. McClellan Jr.'s last day in office. He wanted there to be a public ceremony to celebrate the bridge's opening before his term ended.</span></p>
<p><span>The steel suspension bridge was built to alleviate overcrowding on the Brooklyn Bridge.</span></p>
<p><span>The DUMBO entrance to the Manhattan Bridge's pedestrian path is on Jay Street near the corner of Sands Street.</span></p>
<p><span>Before climbing the stairs to the walkway, take a quick detour down to Anchorage Place to see the bridge's vaulted granite archway. The popular public space is now the home of the DUMBO Reflector, artist David Crumley's nine-foot-tall sign that spells out the neighborhood's name in constantly-changing colored lights.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt="Down on the ground in DUMBO, the Manhattan Bridge's vaulted granite archway is worth a look." title="Down on the ground in DUMBO, the Manhattan Bridge's vaulted granite archway is worth a look." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge-archway.jpg?itok=C4LjRuJZ" /></span></p>
</p>
<p><img alt="Inside the archway, we snap a photo of the DUMBO Reflector, which was designed by artist David Crumley." title="Inside the archway, we snap a photo of the DUMBO Reflector, which was designed by artist David Crumley." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/dumbo-installation.jpg?itok=SSzIoZZ0" /></p>
<p><span>Once you're up on the walkway, the first thing you'll see is DUMBO Heights, the office complex that Kushner Cos. and its investor partners created from former Bible-printing plants they purchased from the Jehovah's Witnesses. Some of the buildings are connected by skybridges.</span></p>
<p><span>Jared Kushner headed Kushner Cos. until he stepped aside to serve as senior adviser to President Donald Trump, his father-in-law.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt="As we stroll along the Manhattan Bridge's pedestrian path, we see skybridges connecting DUMBO Heights buildings." title="As we stroll along the Manhattan Bridge's pedestrian path, we see skybridges connecting DUMBO Heights buildings." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/dumbo-skybridge.jpg?itok=nJggTnJO" /></span></p>
<p><span> </span></p>
<p><span>* * *</span></p>
<p><strong>Carrere &amp; Hasting designed its monumental Manhattan entrance</strong><span> </span></p>
<p><span>Some of Two Trees Management's buildings are easy to identify from the walkway — for instance office building 55 Washington St., thanks to the signage in the windows of one of its retail tenants, gourmet grocer Foragers. </span></p>
<p><span>When you get to the middle of the Manhattan Bridge and see the staggering Brooklyn Bridge Park scenery we described at the outset of this story, you'll want to stand there and take photos for a good long time. </span></p>
<p><span>Once you tear yourself away, Lower Manhattan's shoreline beckons. </span></p>
<p><span>Chinatown's tenements look picturesque. There's a stunning old church made of stone on the corner of Henry and Market streets.</span></p>
<p><span>We looked it up after we went walking on the bridge — and it turned out to be the combination Georgian-Gothic-style Sea and Land Church, which was built in 1817. This individual city landmark now belongs to the First Chinese Presbyterian Church of the City of New York. </span></p>
<p><span>Your stroll ends at the intersection of Canal Street and the Bowery.</span></p>
<p><span>There, you find an eye-popping granite colonnade and arch at the bridge's Manhattan entrance. This grand entrance was designed by the great masters of Beaux-Arts architectural style, Carrere &amp; Hastings.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt="Here's the DUMBO pedestrian entrance to the Manhattan Bridge." title="Here's the DUMBO pedestrian entrance to the Manhattan Bridge." height="732" width="978" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge-ped-entrance.jpg?itok=LuMKHuWG" /></span></p>
</p>
<p><img alt="The scenery up here is inspirational for joggers." title="The scenery up here is inspirational for joggers." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge-joggers.jpg?itok=wU9ZotGt" /></p>
<p><img alt="From the Manhattan Bridge's walkway, we see eye-catching Chinatown buildings." title="From the Manhattan Bridge's walkway, we see eye-catching Chinatown buildings." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/chinatown-views.jpg?itok=WVrQoWe_" /></p>
<p><img alt="From our vantage point on the pedestrian path we notice a mural whose inscription says, “Seize your passion.” " title="From our vantage point on the pedestrian path we notice a mural whose inscription says, “Seize your passion.” " class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/seize-your-passion.jpg?itok=nsSHbVEQ" /></p>
<p><img alt="From up on the bridge we see the landmarked Sea and Land Church, which was constructed in 1817." title="From up on the bridge we see the landmarked Sea and Land Church, which was constructed in 1817." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/sea-land-church.jpg?itok=eMGLaQ-Y" /></p>
<p><img alt="This is the corner of Market Street and East Broadway in Chinatown, as seen from the walkway of the Manhattan Bridge. " title="This is the corner of Market Street and East Broadway in Chinatown, as seen from the walkway of the Manhattan Bridge. " class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/east-broadway.jpg?itok=SHKsTRDZ" /></p>
<p><img alt="We reach the end of the pedestrian path and find ourselves at the Manhattan Bridge's majestic Canal Street entrance." title="We reach the end of the pedestrian path and find ourselves at the Manhattan Bridge's majestic Canal Street entrance." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/canal-st-entrance.jpg?itok=8xxAPBkJ" /></p>
<p><img alt="Here's a closer look at the artistry of the Manhattan Bridge's Canal Street arch." title="Here's a closer look at the artistry of the Manhattan Bridge's Canal Street arch." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/canal-st-arch.jpg?itok=f9fWMkpk" /></p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/real-estate">Real Estate</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Eye on Real Estate: The views of DUMBO will amaze you</div></div></div>Wed, 03 Jan 2018 15:18:26 +0000Lore Croghan23582 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comEveryone's favorite street for photos in DUMBO is desertedhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2018/1/2/everyones-favorite-street-photos-dumbo-deserted
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/washington-st.jpg?itok=A9rI3gy5" alt="Baby it&#039;s cold outside. So cold that nobody&#039;s taking pictures at Selfie Central on Washington Street in DUMBO. Eagle photos by Lore Croghan" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><span>If you want a private moment at DUMBO's prime spot for selfie-snapping, you have to try really, really hard.</span></p>
<p><span>​Selfie Central, the cobble-stone-covered stretch of Washington Street near the corner of Water Street, is normally a tourist magnet.</span></p>
<p><span>Visitors from all over the world go there to take pictures. The historic red-brick buildings there serve as a picture frame for the Manhattan Bridge, which is at the end of the street. If you squint and gaze into the distance, you can see the Empire State Building framed by the Manhattan Bridge's supports.</span></p>
<p><span>By day, by night, in weather fair and foul, people take pictures on Washington Street.</span></p>
<p><span>If you want the place to yourself, the best time to go is early on a weekday morning — when tourists are still indoors drinking coffee at neighborhood eateries and it's extremely cold outside.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt=" Here's the Manhattan Bridge, as seen from a pathway in Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is pretty much deserted on a cold winter weekday." title=" Here's the Manhattan Bridge, as seen from a pathway in Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is pretty much deserted on a cold winter weekday." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge_1.jpg?itok=di6qBEau" /></span></p>
<p><span><img alt="When you stand at this spot in Brooklyn Bridge Park, you can see both the Manhattan Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge." title="When you stand at this spot in Brooklyn Bridge Park, you can see both the Manhattan Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/brooklyn-bridge-park_0.jpg?itok=VlN2Nt5k" /></span></p>
</p>
<p><img alt="Here's a glimpse of the Manhattan Bridge's underside from the shoreline of Brooklyn Bridge Park." title="Here's a glimpse of the Manhattan Bridge's underside from the shoreline of Brooklyn Bridge Park." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge-underside.jpg?itok=d__tWE-k" /></p>
<p><span>The day this picture of Selfie Central was taken, when no other shutterbugs could be found, the temperature was 24 degrees.</span></p>
<p><span>The Manhattan Bridge looked beautiful even in the ugly cold.</span></p>
<p><span>That morning, Brooklyn Bridge Park was pretty much deserted when these other pix of Manhattan Bridge were snapped. There weren't even any dog-walkers on the shoreline. </span></p>
<p><span>Another great vantage point for photographing the Manhattan Bridge is the roof of the landmarked Empire Stores complex.</span></p>
<p><span>Normally, the public space up on the rooftop is full of folks taking photos. Guess what? It was empty.</span></p>
<p><span><img alt="The Manhattan Bridge looks majestic from this vantage point in Brooklyn Bridge Park." title="The Manhattan Bridge looks majestic from this vantage point in Brooklyn Bridge Park." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/manhattan-bridge-bbp_0.jpg?itok=kkR44GNp" /></span></p>
<p><span><img alt="It's quiet here at the end of Main Street, just outside Brooklyn Bridge Park." title="It's quiet here at the end of Main Street, just outside Brooklyn Bridge Park." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/main-st-dumbo.jpg?itok=hK8O0e_p" /></span></p>
</p>
<p><img alt="On the way up the stairs to Empire Stores' rooftop, an old-fashioned window frames a view of the Manhattan Bridge." title="On the way up the stairs to Empire Stores' rooftop, an old-fashioned window frames a view of the Manhattan Bridge." class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/empire-stores-manhattan-bridge_1.jpg?itok=uM9qNYRA" /></p>
</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/arts-and-entertainment">Arts and Entertainment</a></li></ul></div>Tue, 02 Jan 2018 16:22:15 +0000Lore Croghan23570 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comMillions (and millions) of visitors poured into Brooklyn Bridge Park this summerhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2017/12/26/millions-visitors-brooklyn-bridge-park-summer
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/bbp-movies-mfrost-7-6-12-b_0.jpg?itok=396F2Wtj" alt="Brooklyn Bridge Park’s seventh summer season was its busiest ever, according to a year-end wrap-up sent out by park operators. Shown: The outdoor film series Movies With A View. Photo by Mary Frost" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>If it seemed like there were more people than last year at <a href="https://www.brooklynbridgepark.org/" target="_blank">Brooklyn Bridge Park</a> this past summer, you were right on the money. The park’s seventh summer season was its busiest ever, according to a year-end wrap-up sent out by park operators.</p>
<p>Popular events such as the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival, Photoville, Met Opera and Movies With A View attracted more than 300,000 visitors this year to the 85-acre strip running along the East River. This number increases steadily very year, but doesn’t count the people who come just to stroll, sunbathe on the lawn or throw some burgers and dogs on the grill.</p>
<p>Park spokesperson Sarah Krauss told the <i>Brooklyn Eagle </i>on Tuesday that the figures just released don’t include general visitor numbers, as the park is still aggregating data from their park user count conducted over the summer.</p>
<p>Krauss referred the paper to last year’s aggregated numbers, however, to get a feel for the final count. In the summer of 2016, there were 330,000 visitors every week between Labor Day and Memorial Day, a period of 14 weeks. That means 4,620,000 visited the park just over the summer of 2016. So it looks likely that close to 5 million visitors attended the park in 2017, if the trend continued.</p>
<p>And it seems probable it will continue into the future, as the programming continues to evolve. For example, the outdoor film series Movies With A View partnered this summer with DeKalb Market Hall to include concessions from Brooklyn food and alcohol vendors. All the Park’s a Stage brought in 2,000 visitors to explore different parts of the park as they were treated to a panoramic performance of “Macbeth” by New York Classical Theatre.</p>
<p><img alt="The picnic area near Pier 5 is a popular summer destination in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo by Mary Frost" title="The picnic area near Pier 5 is a popular summer destination in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo by Mary Frost" height="468" width="654" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bbp-bbq1-by-mary-frost-b_0.jpg?itok=aM-YwQ9D" /></p>
<p>Besides programs, the park offers outdoor and athletic pursuits such as free kayaking, a weekly run with New York Road Runners, fitness classes and basketball clinics. Almost 8,000 students from 114 schools attended education programs in the park this year, and park amenities such as the roller rink and climbing wall continued to be a hit.</p>
<p>Considering the size of the park, the annual visitor count is remarkable. Brooklyn’s flagship park, Prospect Park, attracts roughly 10 million visitors a year, roughly double the number of Brooklyn Bridge Park. However, Prospect Park, at 526 acres, is more than six times as large as Brooklyn Bridge Park.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/news">News</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">They came for programs, shows and just to hang out</div></div></div>Tue, 26 Dec 2017 20:53:00 +0000Mary Frost23528 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comDilapidated park in DUMBO inches closer to makeoverhttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2017/12/22/dilapidated-park-dumbo-inches-closer-makeover
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/bridge-park2-cracked-asphalt-by-mary-frost-b.jpg?itok=jEYicFLJ" alt="This cracked and crumbling asphalt lot in DUMBO will soon be transformed into a functioning park. Plans for its rehab have been submitted to the Public Design Commission. Photos by Mary Frost" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>The cracked and crumbling asphalt lot in DUMBO that is designated Bridge Park 2 by the city Parks Department is one step closer to its transformation into a green recreation area.</p>
<p>The design for the park’s makeover was presented by Community Board 2’s Parks and Recreation Committee last Monday and has been submitted to the Public Design Commission. It will be moving ahead at the Tuesday, Jan. 2 CB2 general board meeting.</p>
<p>The project will tackle both of the dismal, irregularly-shaped sections bounded by Bridge, Jay, York and Prospect streets.</p>
<p>According to the Parks Department, the <a href="https://www.nycgovparks.org/planning-and-building/capital-project-tracker/project/8571" target="_blank">plan will reconstruct the existing kiddie playground</a> with new equipment for kids ages 2-5 and 5-12, including swings and a spray shower. The larger section of the park will include a new adult fitness area, a multi-purpose synthetic turf field and a performance stage. A projector mounted on a tall pole will allow films and videos to be projected onto the structural BQE wall.</p>
<p>The work will also include benches, an art area, fences, drainage and water supply and plantings.</p>
<p><img alt="The Park Department released this map showing plans for Bridge Park 2 at Monday's CB2 subcommittee meeting. Map courtesy of NYC Park’s Department" title="The Park Department released this map showing plans for Bridge Park 2 at Monday's CB2 subcommittee meeting. Map courtesy of NYC Park’s Department" height="475" width="674" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bridge-park2-map-new-by-mary-frost.jpg?itok=2CVVypZx&amp;c=3d74a83133f1461917a57779f755ff19" /></p>
<p>The Watchtower agreed in 2004 to renovate Bridge Park 2 when the city rezoned a massive site the Witnesses own at 85 Jay St.</p>
<p>Last year, reps for the Watchtower asked City Councilmember Stephen Levin to assist them in contacting the Parks Department to offer a financial settlement. Levin's office told the Jehovah's Witnesses that the Parks Department estimated it could do the project for <a href="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2016/1/11/jehovahs-witnesses-create-fund-long-awaited-bridge-park-ii-renovation" target="_blank">$5.33 million, according to an article in this paper by Lore Croghan</a>.</p>
<p>Department of Parks and Recreation officials and <a href="https://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/40/52/dtg-bridge-park-2-designs-2017-12-22-bk.html" target="_blank">Levin negotiated a settlement of $7 million</a> to account for the cost of inflation after the deal was made, according to the Brooklyn Paper.</p>
<p>The Brooklyn Paper also points out one downside to the plan — athletes in the Yorkfield Stickball League who play in the park will lose their patch of pitted asphalt.</p>
<p><img alt="The park’s kiddie playground will also get a complete makeover." title="The park’s kiddie playground will also get a complete makeover." height="507" width="675" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bridge-park2-playground-by-mary-frost-b.jpg?itok=zFDeiV7i" /></p>
<p><strong>Other agenda items</strong></p>
<p>Other items on Tuesday’s agenda include a recommendation by the Transportation and Public Safety Committee to recommend to the NYS legislature approval of design-build authorization for the BQE’s "Triple Cantilever" project; approval of restaurants seeking liquor licenses; and local addresses seeking Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) approvals.</p>
<p>These include 35 Pierrepont Street in the Brooklyn Heights Historic District, which has applied to restore front façade elements. Boldface names residing at 35 Pierrepont include former MTA chaiman Joe Lhota and actor Paul Giamatti. </p>
<p><img alt="Photos by Mary Frost" title="Photos by Mary Frost" height="506" width="676" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bridge-park2-baseball-diamond-by-mary-frost-b.jpg?itok=vo9xPP5C" /></p>
</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/news">News</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Bridge Park 2 closer to green from asphalt</div></div></div>Fri, 22 Dec 2017 23:39:00 +0000Mary Frost23515 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comDOT: BQE rehab must be completed by 2026 or trucks could be diverted through residential streetshttp://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2017/12/12/dot-bqe-rehab-must-be-completed-2026-or-trucks-could-be-diverted-streets
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/bqe-atlantic-ave-exit-courtesy-dot-b.jpg?itok=1TbHOtvD" alt="The BQE approaching Atlantic Avenue. Photo courtesy of DOT" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>At a meeting hosted by the city’s Department of Transportation (DOT) Monday night, concerned Brooklyn residents heard new information about the timeline of the massive Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) rehabilitation project.</p>
<p>The seven-year project will restore the crumbling 1.5 mile stretch of the BQE between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street, a segment that includes the triple cantilever underpinning the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. DOT calls the 1.5 mile stretch of roadway “one of the most critical and complex sections of urban expressway in the nation.”</p>
<p>Inspections of the roadway and its 21 bridges have produced new data about how long the existing structure will last before it becomes seriously dilapidated.</p>
<p>If significant repairs and replacements are not made by 2026, vehicle-weight limits and truck diversions will be necessary, DOT engineers told attendees at Tuesday’s workshop, held at MetroTech in Downtown Brooklyn.</p>
<p>“They have crunched some numbers, they’ve looked at some data in terms of their testing and their scanning, and given us new information tonight on the timeframe of the deterioration of the structure as it relates to its capacity to support truck traffic,” Peter Bray, executive director of the Brooklyn Heights Association, told the <i>Brooklyn Eagle</i>.</p>
<p>“They say in 2026 they’re going to seriously have to consider diverting truck traffic from the structure. It’s a complicated project … but we don’t have a whole lot of time to waste,” Bray said.</p>
<p>“I’m worried about traffic in Brooklyn Heights,” resident Helen Simonson said. “In 1992 there were some emergency repairs to the BQE one summer and the traffic on Hicks Street was so bad and the fumes were so bad that we had to live in the back room of our house and we could not live in the front. So the thought of five years of Brooklyn Heights being perhaps unlivable due to traffic has me concerned.”</p>
<p>Over the next two years, DOT’s consultant team will prepare required environmental documents as well as develop the preliminary design. The environmental process is expected to conclude in 2019 with the approval of the selected design.</p>
<p><img alt="The crumbling, triple-decked cantilever underpinning the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. Photo by Mary Frost" title="The crumbling, triple-decked cantilever underpinning the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. Photo by Mary Frost" height="462" width="653" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bqe-cantilever-by-mary-frost-b.jpg?itok=RQi2iy7V" /></p>
<p><strong>Will Albany approve design-build?</strong></p>
<p>The project team will need to know if the project can move forward as a design-bid build project or as a design-build project, which could shave years off construction, said Tanvi Pandya, program manager for the project.</p>
<p>The design-build process works by merging the design and construction bids, usually bid separately on large projects. When bid separately, two firms have to try to work together.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2017/6/26/albanys-failure-approve-faster-cheaper-fix-bqe-disgrace-say-brooklyn" target="_blank">Without design-build, the work will disrupt traffic </a>not only in the Brooklyn Heights area but across the entire region for up to two years longer than necessary, and cost as much as $300 million more, according to the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT).</p>
<p>“Last year design-build made it through the Assembly. It didn’t quite make it through the Senate,” Robert Collyer, DOT deputy commissioner and chief bridge officer, told the crowd. “There seem to be a couple of different folks that have different views of what should and should not be in the law.”</p>
<p>Professional engineers from upstate worried about their jobs and local contractors facing pre-approved union agreements are among those pushing back against the use of design-build in NYC, he said. A lawsuit several years ago put an end to its use in the city for the most part, Collyer said.</p>
<p>“My understanding is that the legislature has to provide the city with that design-build authority this spring, otherwise they’re going to have to proceed with the traditional building approach and that’s going to have to extend beyond 2026,” Bray told the Eagle.</p>
<p>Bray said that meeting with new state Senator Brian Kavanagh (26th District), who took over the seat formerly held by Daniel Squadron, “is top on our agenda. We know that [the BQE project] a priority of his.”</p>
<p>“It’s a very big priority,” Sen. Kavanagh told the <i>Eagle</i>. “Design-build is not a new idea. I have been a prime sponsor of a bill in the Assembly already that would allow design-build to be used in projects like this.”</p>
<p>“We have already had state projects using design-build, including the Kosciuszko Bridge,” he said. “It’s long overdue that we get it in the city. I will be working on the broader bill but also on the particular bill that will allow design-build specifically on this project.”</p>
<p>Kavanagh said he would be working with colleagues like Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, Sen. Marty Golden and other Albany officials to get the bill passed.</p>
<p>“My hope is we can get it done promptly in the new session.” He added, “Albany’s wheels sometimes turn at their own pace. I haven’t heard a good reason not to use it.”</p>
<p>Bray said that BHA organized a campaign “to get other stakeholder groups to sign on to a letter that we sent to [Gov.] Cuomo and to the Senate majority leader and Assembly leader urging passage of this, and we’re going to keep working with Sen. Kavanagh.”</p>
<p><img alt="Photo by Mary Frost" title="Photo by Mary Frost" height="694" width="550" class="media-element file-default panopoly-image-original" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_original/public/bqe-cantilever-bad-shape-1-by-mary-frost-b_1.jpg?itok=cbvx1ocm" /></p>
<p><strong>Quality of life in Brooklyn Heights</strong></p>
<p>Bray said the construction, which could last from five to seven years or longer, is going to be “really, really difficult, especially for those people who live closest to it. You can’t undertake a project like this, in which they’re going to be presumably tearing apart the structure in many places and breaking up concrete and cutting down steel and replacing steel and building a new temporary structure, that’s not going to be noisy, dusty, dirty and have a lot of truck activity. This was built 75 years ago, and … the bill is coming due.”</p>
<p>BHA’s next annual meeting is going to focus on this project, Bray said.</p>
<p>“The import thing is all the important decisions about this project are going to be made within the next 12 to 18 months,” Bray said. “By the time the construction starts, all the decisions will have been made, so now is the time for people who have concerns about how best to mitigate those problems that are going to happen to get involved, attend meetings, participate in these workshops.”</p>
<p>Despite her worries about the future livability of Brooklyn Heights, Simonson said she has been “very happy so far with the outreach, and it’s great to talk to the actual engineers on the project.”</p>
<p><strong>Future concerns</strong></p>
<p>Concerns that will be addressed in future workshops involve the impact of the construction on Brooklyn Bridge Park and other parklands; the flexibility of the process; how freight trucks that use the area will be affected; and how the construction will impact businesses.</p>
<p>Another concern is how construction will affect the structure of landmarked buildings, some with cracks already from ongoing vibrations.</p>
<p>Pandya said DOT would have to use the Section 106 process to protect properties, especially if they are landmarked, throughout construction. Section 106 requires Federal agencies to take into account the effects of their undertakings on historic properties.</p>
<p>“We’ve done a very limited study to get a handle on how much vibration is be generated,” Pandya said. “It’s difficult to tell in some cases where the vibrations are coming from; there are subways running underneath.” Further study will need to be carried out, she said.</p>
<p>When it comes to parks, “We’re looking to make it a win-win in the end. We don’t intend to take [parkland],” she said, adding, however, that the process may include “some kind of swap to make it better.”</p>
<p>The good news is that the city is not considering eminent domain in the project, Pandya said. “Very simply, no … We very much intend to stay within our right-of-way.”</p>
<p>More specifics will be coming at future workshops, Pandya said. The website has gone live at <a href="https://bqe-i278.com">https://bqe-i278.com</a> .</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/news">News</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Brooklyn Heights residents need to get involved now, BHA says</div></div></div>Tue, 12 Dec 2017 22:46:00 +0000Mary Frost23399 at http://www.brooklyneagle.comState Sen. Brian Kavanagh: ‘Brooklyn will not be lost in the shuffle’http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2017/12/8/state-sen-brian-kavanagh-brooklyn-will-not-be-lost-shuffle
<div class="field field-name-field-featured-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img class="panopoly-image-half" src="http://www.brooklyneagle.com/sites/default/files/styles/panopoly_image_half/public/pages/kavenagh-levin-l-train-courtesy-kavenagh-office.jpg?itok=ZKkp384x" alt="Then-Assemblymember Brian Kavanagh, center, at a recent press conference about the upcoming L Train shutdown. To the left is City Councilmember Stephen Levin, and to the right is Sen. Marty Golden. Photo courtesy of Sen. Brian Kavanagh’s Office" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>The Brooklyn waterfront’s new state Senator Brian Kavanagh wants residents of the 26th District Senate seat formerly held by Daniel Squadron to know that “Brooklyn will not be lost in the shuffle.”</p>
<p>Kavanagh announced on Thursday that he has resigned from the New York State Assembly, where he represented the 74th District on Manhattan’s east side, and has taken his oath of office in the Senate, where he will be representing the Brooklyn waterfront from Greenpoint to Carroll Gardens as well as lower Manhattan.</p>
<p>In a special election held during November’s general election, Kavanagh defeated Republican challenger Analicia Alexander with 85 percent of the vote.</p>
<p>A Kavanagh spokesperson told the <i>Brooklyn Eagle</i> on Thursday that Kavanagh will be focusing on issues important to residents of the Brooklyn waterfront, including affordable housing, inappropriate development and overcrowded schools.</p>
<p>In his new seat, Kavanagh will represent the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, the Columbia Waterfront, DUMBO, Downtown Brooklyn, Fulton Ferry, Greenpoint, the Navy Yard, Vinegar Hill and Williamsburg. His Manhattan district extends from Battery Park City through Chinatown, the Lower East Side and Tribeca.</p>
<p>“I’m grateful that the people of the 26th District have elected me to serve them in the state Senate. I look forward to representing communities throughout lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn waterfront,” Kavanagh said in a statement. “This district has real needs — from promoting affordable housing, to improving transit and mitigating the impact of the looming L-train shutdown, to preventing inappropriate development, to ensuring our schools have the resources they need, to preserving and expanding green spaces.”</p>
<p>Kavanagh’s office says his legislative priorities in Albany include modernizing New York’s antiquated election laws, preventing gun violence, protecting the environment, enacting stronger tenant protections and fixing the city’s beleaguered transportation system.</p>
<p>Squadron resigned unexpectedly to accept a job heading Future Now, a nonprofit political organization.</p>
<p>While well regarded, Kavanagh went through a nomination process that raised eyebrows. Some of Brooklyn’s Democratic reformers objected when Kings County party boss Frank Seddio gave him the nod with no input from the local county committee. Across the river, Paul Newell, a district leader in lower Manhattan, took the majority of the local votes. A spokesman for <a href="https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20170918/williamsburg/election-primary-appointment-daniel-squadron" target="_blank">Brooklyn's Democratic Party, however, told DNAinfo</a> that there was no requirement for Seddio to put the selection up for a vote, and that Seddio “consulted many members of the party who all got behind Kavanagh.”</p>
<p>Before joining the Senate, Kavanagh served 11 years in the Assembly, was chief of staff to then-Councilmember Gale Brewer, worked in three mayoral administrations and practiced law.</p>
<p>Kavanagh’s father, an Irish immigrant, worked as a police officer and his mother was a community leader who worked for many years at the <i>Staten Island Advance</i>. Kavanagh attended Regis High School in Manhattan, Princeton University and New York University Law School.</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-feature field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Yes</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-status field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Feature content:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-subcategory-highlights field-type-list-boolean field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">No</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-featured-categories field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above clearfix"><h3 class="field-label">Categories: </h3><ul class="links"><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-0"><a href="/politics">Politics</a></li><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-1"><a href="/politics/city">City</a></li><li class="taxonomy-term-reference-2"><a href="/politics/state">State</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-subhead field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">B’klyn’s new waterfront state Senator serves Lower East Side, too</div></div></div>Fri, 08 Dec 2017 23:17:00 +0000Mary Frost23372 at http://www.brooklyneagle.com